The virulent H5N1 bird flu virus has been confirmed in six additional areas in eastern Afghanistan and the country´s capital, the United Nations said Thursday.

The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization said samples collected from home-raised poultry tested positive in an FAO-supported laboratory.

It confirmed H5N1 outbreaks on Wednesday in the Khogiani, Rodat and Bati Kot districts of Nangarhar province, Khas Kunar and Kuz Kunar in Kunar province, and in the Shah Shahid area of Kabul.

The government immediately began disinfecting and quarantining affected areas and slaughtering nearby poultry, FAO said in a statement, without providing further details.

FAO had confirmed outbreaks of H5N1 in the eastern city of Jalalabad on Feb. 20, and in the Sawki district of Kunar on Feb. 24.